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Three Quotes to Boost Your Productivity

Three Quotes to Boost Your Productivity

Ever since I’ve returned home from Rhode Island I have hit the ground running. My usually sluggish Monday morning routine was instead greeted this week by someone who woke up slightly earlier (did you catch my Monday Mantra post about mornings?), planned out her day, and crossed off every item on her to-do list (by about midnight). How’s that for being productive? And the energy levels haven’t decreased since…

I took my own advice of accomplishing the most pressing things early in my week — like, first thing Monday morning. Since I was out-of-town last week, there were quite a few emails to reply to, posts to start writing, and just general follow-up. Of course, my productivity was interrupted with a few minutes spent perusing Snapchat and Instagram every so often.

So here’s how I’ve achieved “productive rockstar” status (at least in my own mind):

Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today: Benjamin Franklin said it best. This is actually a quote that I try to live by — okay, maybe not on Fridays when the weekend is calling me. But for the most part, if it’s on my to do list, it gets done that day. One way to make sure that happens is by limiting my list to just three “must accomplish” tasks per day.

The time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time: I couldn’t agree more with Bertrand Russell about this! But I didn’t realize how dependent I was on social media until I went to Pennsylvania (and then Rhode Island) and was constantly checking Instagram, making snaps for Snapchat, or tweeting. I love engaging on social media, but when I need to get work done it can be a major distraction. Limiting the amount of times (in an hour) I check social media platforms has been crucial to getting more done during the work day.

Failing to plan is planning to fail: Thank you Alan Alamein for these wise words! I have a confession: planning is not one of my strengths. Both times I’ve traveled in the last month I should have had posts written well in advance. And both times that didn’t happen (although I did a better job planning ahead the second time). I tend to make good use of my time in a pinch, like writing a blog post on the ferry ride over to New London, Connecticut. But I did use much of my afternoons to write in the hotel room when I probably should have been out exploring my destination. Note to self: plan on planning. Anyone have any planning tips they want to share? I’m all ears!

While it feels great to be productive (yea, I’m still beaming about all that I have accomplished in 48 hours) it’s also important to cut yourself some slack. You can’t always have those super productive days, and when you work in a creative field like I do, it’s not always possible to get in the groove. Don’t beat yourself up if something gets pushed to tomorrow. As long as you’re on top of your priorities, it’s okay to take a break and resume productivity 101 at a later time!

How do you ensure you accomplish everything you need to during the week?

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Comments

  5. Great to hear about your rowdy, productive day. Kickin’ booty and taking names!

    My planning processes will likely change in full time blogger status over here (I mean, it’s only day 2 over here!) but one thing that has worked for me is to PLAN when I should be checking my email. I’m the type that gets easily distracted by email notifications when I see them come in. Planning when to check them (typically the beginning and end of each day) means that I know everything will be covered, but I can remain with the task at hand.

    Good luck keeping up your productivity levels this week – I’m certain you can do it!
    XO, Jessica
    http://www.semisweettooth.com

    Reply

    • Thanks, Jessica! I’ve found keeping my phone on silent so I don’t hear the notifications all day to be a huge help. I normally check emails three or four times a day, just to see if anything important came in, and then will answer them in the evening. Hope your second day of full-time blogging is going well!

      Reply

  10. Thanks for the words of wisdom! The last one was my favorite. Blogging in particular becomes so much more manageable when I plan ahead (which unfortunately I rarely do…)

    Mili

    Reply

    • Thanks, Mili! I’ve found using my Day Planner to be helpful in setting an editorial calendar. But when it comes to writing posts a week in advance that’s where my lack of planning strikes.

      Reply

  11. These quotes are amazing and definitely makes me feel a little less guilty about my down times with good ole Netflix. It’s hard not to feel that way when I sit down in front of the TV but I don’t do much else to relax so this quote is right on the dot!

    xo, alice / T Y P E N U

    Reply

    • Thanks, Alice! We all need our down time. If I’ve worked hard all day, I don’t feel too guilty about turning my brain off and indulging in some highly educational (LOL) reality tv!

      Reply

  12. These are wonderful! Sometimes I feel like I’ve wasted an entire afternoon when I’m spending time with my kids being silly and not getting any housework or errands done. But it’s so true that time isn’t always wasted if you enjoyed it! I love your positive outlook Vanessa 🙂

    xoxo touchofcurl.com

    Reply

    • Thanks, Colleen! I certainly have days where I’m less productive, but I don’t beat myself up over it. Sometimes you just need to do what you want — even if that’s catching up on reality tv!

      Reply

  15. I really love that quote from Bertrand Russell. It makes me feel a bit better about time spent on Pinterest, reading blogs, etc. Though I, like you, need to work on limiting the amount of time spent on those outlets!

    Reply

  16. Yet another great and motivational post, Vanessa! I love the quote by Benjamin Franklin. I try my absolute best to get everything that I know I can do today done, so that I don’t create a longer list of to-do’s tomorrow. Thanks so much for sharing these motivational quotes with us, it’s great to have these kind of reminders every so often 🙂 I hope you’re continue to have a very productive week!

    XO,

    Jalisa
    http://www.thestylecontour.com

    Reply

  20. Great quotes, thank you for sharing. My friend told me about a great motivational book called “Eat That Frog!”. My initial reaction was “eat the frog?! What?!”, but apparently, if you use “eat that frog” as a metaphor for tackling the most challenging task of your day – the one you are most likely to procrastinate on – then you can go through the day knowing that things can only get better and easier. Not sure if you’ve ever heard of this, and I’ve yet to read the book, but I thought I’d share, because it’s a fun and unusual metaphor for getting motivated 🙂 Angharad x

    http://www.welshandwonderful.com

    Reply

    • Thanks for sharing, Angharad! I’ve never heard that metaphor before, but I agree with getting the most challenging thing crossed off your to-do list first. I’ll have to check out that book!

      Reply

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hey there!

I’m Vanessa E. Steil, a board-certified patient advocate, equestrian, and the blogger behind Living in Steil (pronounced ‘style’). Thanks so much for stopping by!

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